Fusion of contemporary poetry and ethnic sound - ALIF

features Sep 20, 03:50pm

Pune based sufi-rock band Alif comprising of Muneem (vocals), Hardik Vaghela (keyboards), Chaitanya Bhaidkar (guitars), Karan Chitra Deshmukh (drums) and Amit Gadgil (bass) feel they are mystical, strong and united. “We express ourselves as poets first then musicians”, adds Muneem, who also is the songwriter for the band contributing ‘Kashmiri and Urdu poetry’ to their music.

“The main agenda is to share passion and compassion through our music”

- Alif

Muneem talks about finding his band members during his MBA days in Pune, forming Highway 61 which later evolved into Alif in 2008. “I have been writing poetry since I was 14 and it comes from the experiences i have absorbed from the conflicts that I have encountered being and putting up at Kashmir. The main agenda is to share the passion and compassion through our music and let people feel it too, to let people see Kashmir in a better light than what they assume of it to be.”

On this prospect, Alif has been making music for several years, getting accolades around the globe for the substance of their poetry and have finally released their very first album ‘Sufayed’, which is based on Newton’s experimentation of colour, where the 7 colours revolve so fast that it ultimately forms into the colour white, which is also what Sufayed means in Urdu. The 13-track album ranges from songs with philosophical views like ‘Shartiya’ to the grievances of women in ‘Jhelumus’, to giving serious thoughts to societal views on mental illness in ‘Malaal kya hua’. The album has been doing profoundly good on portals like iTunes, OK Listen, Saavn and other musical gateways and that too not just in Kashmir but has been praised by people who don’t quite understand Kashmiri- Urdu as a language.

Moreover, after the great response to their album, Alif is pretty much on a roll with their music being in line to be featured in the upcoming Bollywood feature ‘Torbaaz’, where Muneem is all geared up to contribute for the movie’s dialogues as well. Along with such, Alif has also been a part of Kappa TV, Kerala, Coke Studio and several other festivals.